Solari shoots for his second Super Bowl ring

By john reid

Daily News Staff Writer

Posted:
01/28/2013 11:13:34 PM PST

Updated:
01/28/2013 11:13:35 PM PST

San Francisco 49ers offensive line coach Mike Solari is looking for his second Super Bowl ring. Solari -- who played in the offensive line for College of San Mateo in 1973-74 -- was the tight ends coach for the 49ers when they routed the San Diego Chargers 49-26 to win the Super Bowl in 1995. The 49ers go after their sixth Lombardi Trophy on Sunday when they take on the Baltimore Ravens at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans.

The Ravens' defense is expected to be much stingier than the Chargers' defense was in Super Bowl XXIX.

"The key thing to move the ball against Baltimore is to make positive plays," said Solari, a resident of San Jose. "Individually, they are very talented. You just want to keep the chains moving."

Solari worked for Mike Singletary in his last year as head coach at San Francisco, then was hired by Jim Harbaugh when he took over in 2011. Solari, who shares coaching duties in the offensive line with Tim Drevno, has made more stops than a FedEx driver in the Christmas season.

After graduating from San Diego State, Solari's first football coaching job was at Mission Viejo High. Next stop was MiraCosta Junior College, then on to the United States International University in San Diego, to Boise State, the University of Cincinnati, the University of Kansas, then the University of Pittsburgh. Solari's first pro job was as an assistant offensive line/special teams coach for the Dallas Cowboys (1987-88). After a one-year stint with the then-Phoenix Cardinals, Solari followed former Cardinals coach Gene Stallings, who took over the program at Alabama.

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After Solari's five-year stint with San Francisco (1992-96), he spent nine years as offensive line coach at Kansas City before being promoted to offensive coordinator. Two years later, he was let go by head coach Herman Edwards, whom Solari played with at San Diego State. Solari landed in Seattle as offensive line coach for the Seahawks before joining the 49ers for a second time.

"It's hard on the family," Solari said. "It's not hard on the coach because you love what you are doing. Other than one move, they were all promotions. My wife, Patti, was awesome."

One of the 49ers' strengths is their offensive line -- tackles Joe Staley and Anthony Davis, center Jonathan Goodwin, and guards Mike Iupati and Alex Boone.

"It's a group that is unheralded," Solari said. "They get no credit, they just get blamed. It's awesome to see them develop and become one. It's a good group of men and they just keep getting better. The nice thing about it is they are young."

The best offensive line Solari coached was when he was with the Kansas City Chiefs (1997-2007). On that line were the likes of Willie Roaf, Will Shields, Casey Wiegmann and Brian Waters, to name four.

"That was a very good offensive line," Solari said. "This group has more work to do before they achieve that level."

Solari is a part of one of the NFL's greatest success stories as far as his head coaches go. In two seasons, Harbaugh has taken the 49ers to the NFC title game. Now the Super Bowl.

"Jim (Harbaugh) gives you a great opportunity to coach," Solari said. "He lets you do your thing. The most important thing is, he does a great job with the players."

Solari is a member of two halls of fame -- the San Mateo County hall and the Scholar-Athlete Hall of Fame at San Diego State. Solari prepped at El Camino-South San Francisco (class of '73) before starting on the offensive line at CSM. At San Diego State, he played offensive guard as a junior and offensive tackle as a senior.

Solari has worked with some big-name head NFL coaches over the years -- Dick Vermeil and Marty Schottenheimer at Kansas City, San Francisco's George Seifert and the Cowboys' Tom Landry. One day, Solari hopes to be a head coach.

"It would be great to be a head coach," Solari said. "Absolutely. I love coaching. I love football. It's not the money at all. I love working with young men and having an impact on their lives."